Bending Time (Harry Potter Fan-Fiction)
by AuntiePinki
Summary: When Una Langhurst finds a clock and a Diary, the past 30 years are called back and lay on top of the present, visions and shadows of people, who are long since dead, back into the world. The magic isn't strong enough to bring them back fully as is wished. A sacrifice is needed, and James is met with a situation that could get, him, his brother and his father killed.
1. Prologue

Una was running, running faster than she had ever run before. In her hand she held two objects. They'd been wrapped in a blue soft cloth which was slipping over the objects that'd been concealed beneath it

The corridor was long, only slightly lit and deathly silent.

Una could hear her heart beating as she ran, her breath came hard and fast as her feet kept time with her racing heart.

As she rounded the corner a new sound came into range and Una stopped dead in her tracks. Voices were coming from the corridor that she had just run from. Soon they would find what she had taken. She began to run again, faster this time. The voices were becoming fainter, and Una began to calm down.

That's when the Caterwauling Charm came into action. The air became solid around Una and she began to run again. Una was in her fifth year at Hogwarts and did know interesting defensive magic, after all she was a Slytherin. As she put her hand into her pocket to grab her wand, someone grabbed her upper arm, and spun her round. She saw someone who she should not have been able to see.

It had worked, but not fully as the hand was still on her shoulder but there was no sensation and the image was disappearing.

The voices were becoming louder. Una began to run again, her heart lifting from the image she had just seen.

The door came into view at the end of the last corridor and Una ran flat-out. The door seemed to move away from Una as she ran towards it. Her head was spinning and her vision was becoming cloudy and Una was slowing her pace as she ran. The door vanished and Una felt herself falling, then she felt the objects leave her hand and roll away across the floor. Then she blacked out.


	2. Chapter One: Birthday Celebrations

James Potter had grown up in the shadow of one of the most famous and loved wizards in the world. This, had its benefits and its drawbacks, just as you will expect.

Jackson Wheatcroft - a muggle-born wizard, whom James had met on the Hogwarts train in first year - had no idea of James' parentage. For the first few hours of them getting to know each other, they had swapped tales of the muggle world and the wizarding world. Then they talked about Hogwarts and what to expect, then about lessons, and what they could learn. James then accidentally started the conversation about the Battle of Hogwarts, and the second wizarding war. This had captivated Jackson, and he wanted to know every little detail of the battle.

Once at Hogwarts, Neville Longbottom, the Herbology Professor, greeted James with a warm reception. Jackson had stood around awkwardly while they talked, and when the sorting began and Professor Longbottom called James' name, Jackson couldn't understand why everyone seemed tense and expectant. Once they had both been sorted to Gryffindor, Jackson attempted to ask James about what had just happened, but Headmistress McGonagall had called everyone to order, and began the feast. The amount of food that had appeared on the tables stunned both the boys and they immediately began filling their plates... and their mouths. They had both been very tired that night, and as school began the next day, Jackson remained in the dark.

It wasn't until the weekend, when Jackson had left for the library and found out about James' parents.

James was in the common room playing wizard's chess with a fellow first year, Jake Bulstrode, when Jackson had confronted him about it. Once he knew everything, James thought that their friendship would never be the same again. He was wrong. Although Jackson would want to listen to the stories again, he was the same boy who James had met on the train.

Unfortunately, not everyone James met seemed to act like normal people around him. Going into Hogsmead in his third year wasn't fun either. People in the village would greet him constantly and engage him in conversation. Most of the time, he knew the people through his dad. Other times it was awkward. He eventually got to know them, but it was often a reluctant conversation.

So waking up on his birthday, he knew that the day wouldn't be very fun.

Tradition in the Potter/Weasley family, meant that the _entire _family go to the burrow - including the infinite amount of cousins - and the birthday boy or girl, go into Diagon Alley for the day. This was fun, if it wasn't _your _birthday.

James sighed as he pulled on his Weasley jumper with the initials J.S.P. on it, and looked around his slightly messy room. The Gryffindor banner was on the far wall and scarlet and gold was the main colour theme. The snitch he had caught in his first match was on a stand beneath it. Moving pictures of him with his roommates Jackson Wheatcroft, Nathaniel Housley, Peter Westbourne and Johnson Browning, were on the wall and a picture with the Weasley cousins were along with it. James stepped out into the hall and looked into the room beside him, Albus' room was the opposite end of the spectrum. Where James' was only slightly messy, Albus' was a bombsite. Where there were scarlet and gold colours for James, there were silver and green for Albus. The fact that Albus was in Slytherin caused a stir in the wizarding world. The family didn't really mind, but the Profit seemed to think it was the biggest disgrace that the family could ever go through. It took forever to convince Albus of this fact, but when their mother painted his room in Slytherin colours over Christmas break, Albus began to warm to the idea. James poked his head around the corner of his brother's bedroom door, and found the room empty. James pulled back and looked to his sister's room, at the other end of the hall. The door was ajar and from the small crack, James could see the scarlet and gold hanging above her bed. He looked briefly at his parents' room, and opening the door, he found the room empty. He then made his way down stairs. He had expected to find his mother in the kitchen - she always made birthday breakfast - but she wasn't. He expected to find his father in the living room on a floo call to James' Uncle Ron, his father's best friend and brother-in-law, but he wasn't. James also couldn't hear anything in the house. That lead to the conclusion that the house was empty, and would have gone back to bed, if it wasn't for Kreatcher appearing in the living room directly in front of him. James jumped backwards, fell over and pulled the contents of the coffee table with him, snapping three of its four legs.

"Kreatcher is sorry that he frightened Master James." The house elf said, bowing low to James as he got to his feet. "Kreatcher will fix that for you." The house elf clicked his over long fingers and the coffee table fixed itself, and the decorative fruit bowl, his father's papers and the family owls treats, jumped back on the table.

"Kreatcher, where is everyone?" James asked the house elf. Kreatcher turned his big eyes on James, and blinked twice.

"It is Masters Birthday." He said, as if James had forgotten. "Master Harry has taken the family to-" but he stopped talking, and grinned.

"Where?"

Kreatcher laughed, "Master James, Kreatcher cannot tell you!" James stared at the elf, as it continued to laugh. Aunt Hermione had told him on countless occasions, not to get angry at Kreatcher. This was rather hard to do at the moment. There was no one in the house, as the family had gone Merlin knows where, and the only one who knew where they were was a house elf, who at this moment, was laughing at him.

"Kreatcher!" James shouted, "Tell me where they are!"

Kreatcher stopped laughing, recognising the direct order in James voice. Kreatcher struggled with himself for a moment, and was on the verge of speech, when his father appeared in the fireplace.

"Kreatcher, you can go back now." Harry Potter said, climbing out of the fire, and brushing himself down. Kreatcher turned in his direction, bowed deeply, and, with a small crack, vanished.

Harry walked up to his son, straightening his glasses as he went. He had managed to get half way to James, when James cried,

"Where have you been?! What's going on?!" James was half-annoyed that everyone had disappeared on his 16th birthday, and half-excited because they could be somewhere waiting for him.

"James, you remind me of my self so much that is scares me."

Harry lifted his hand, and attempted to flatten his son's hair. As soon as he moved his hand away, James lifted his own hand to his head, and messed it up again.

"I prefer it like this." He said, giving his father a lopsided grin.

Harry laughed softly for a moment, then shook his head.

"Right, we need to get you to where we are going." Harry said, holding out his arm for James to grab.

"And where is that exactly?" James asked excitedly, grabbing his fathers extended arm.

"The Burrow. By extension." and with a crack, they disappeared.

Almost immediately, they arrived in the orchid, just behind the burrow. No one was there. James looked up at his father, Harry was smiling to himself, and set off at a brisk walk.

"Dad, I thought the Burrow was in that direction?" James said, pointing a finger over his shoulder.

"Yes it is James." Harry said, stopping in his tracks a few minutes later.

"Then why aren't we going that way?" James asked, half a laugh escaping him as he looked at his father's expression of supreme smugness.

"I've convinced them."

James could make neither head nor tail of this statement, and so continued to look confusedly at his father.

"Convinced who, what?" James asked nervously, however, excitement was filling his body.

"Your mother, and Grandma Molly." Harry grinned even more, and lent back against a tree. James smiled back and the excitement mounted. There was all sorts of things that James had always wanted to do, but he had either been told that is was too dangerous by his mother, or Grandma Molly.

"What is it?" James said, grinning still more widely.

"What have you always wanted to do at the Burrow, but never been allowed to do?" Harry asked.

James thought for a moment. To make his dad this excited, he knew it was big. James had wanted to do a lot of things, play pranks with Uncle George, fly in Grandad Arthur's car, do magic and…

"Dad?" he asked, hoping beyond hope that his guess was right, "The Weasley family Quidditch game… can I play this year?"

Harry had attempted to keep a straight face, but the urge to grin over took his will power. For a moment he looked like he was going to keep his straight face, and keep James guessing, but it failed and James screamed,

"YES! Finally!" James pounded the air with his fist, jumping up and down whilst his father continued to laugh at the reaction.

"I can't believe that you didn't notice it was gone," Harry said, starting to walk again with James bouncing on every other step. James stopped at this, and Harry, noticing he wasn't walking anymore, also stopped and looked around.

"What was gone?" James asked, racking his brain for what could have gone missing that he should have noticed.

"Your broom, and Quidditch uniform." Harry said, taking off his jacket and revealing his own Quidditch uniform that he took from Hogwarts, and charmed it so that it would fit him even now. Then he turned and the tree behind him opened up to show a small hollow that held two brooms. Harrys re-bought Firebolt, as the last one he lost somewhere over Surry, and James' Nimbus 5 series.

Harry handed James his broom and grinned. James took it, and was about to sit on it, when Harry shook his head,

"We walk it there."

James' grin fell a little, and they began walking towards the middle of the orchid where there was a clearing big enough for a game of low-flying Quidditch.


	3. Chapter Two: Weasley Quidditch Match

When James pushed through the last line of trees, he saw the entire family was there.

Bill, Charlie and George were manoeuvring a Quidditch goal post into place and shrinking it slightly so that it would mark the height that the players would be allowed to go to.

Percy was talking with his wife Audrey and sister-in-law Fleur, and their children Molly and Lucy, were playing with Bill and Fleur's children Victoire, Dominique and Louis. Fred, Hugo and Albus were hiding behind a tree watching Angelina and Ginny plate up food. Roxanne and Lily were making daisy chains next to where James and Harry emerged and were the first to see them arrive. Lily jumped to her feet and threw her arms around her brother.

"Happy Birthday Jamie!" She squealed in his ear.

"Calm down Lils, don't strangle the boy." Said Roxanne, putting a hand on the older girls arm. Roxanne came up to Hogwarts the year after Lily and became a Ravenclaw, the two girls were very close friends and were practically inseparable. Lily released her grip on James and smiled at him,

"You have no idea how stressed mum's been this morning! We had to send Kreatcher every half an hour to see if you were awake yet." Lily said, grabbing James' arm and pulling him into the clearing more, as Harry went over to Ginny, wrapped his arms around her from behind and whispered something. James watched them as his mother turned around, kissed his father on the cheek and smiled. She then tossed her hair over her shoulder and came over to James.

"Happy birthday my baby boy." She said, pulling him into a hug. She was just about to tell him something when Grandma Molly pulled James into a rib cracking hug.

"Oh, Jamie." She said in a strangled voice, "My baby's baby is growing up."

"Grandma," James said, trying to pull out of the hug, but giving up and allowed Grandma Weasley to squeeze him ever more tighter. When Grandma Weasley eventually let go and she had tears in her eyes.

"You're growing up just like your father, its spooky." She said, then used her wand to conjure a comb and try to flatten his hair.

"Yeah, he's his father in miniature and has his hair and trouble making skills to match, but, I can bet, no Quidditch skills." Charlie said, winking as he walked past them with a box of Quidditch balls.

"Your really going to let me play this year Grandma?" James asked. Molly pulled a strained expression, then smiled.

"They can be a bit boisterous, and I don't want you to get hurt." She said, looking into James green eyes.

"It's ok mum." George said coming to stand with them, "We won't bloody him up too bad."

Molly turned around and hit George with the comb she had conjured and George rubbed his head where it made contact. He then ran off to help Bill shrink the last goal post.

Grandad Weasley then appeared behind James, levitating a score board in front of him, and wearing black and white stripped robes, he always refereed the matches. He wasn't the best of fliers, but he was good at spotting fouls, because the Weasley/Potter games were full of fouls.

James changed into his Quidditch robes, and mounted his broom. No one was to fly higher than the middle hoop, because that's where the invisibility charm ran out, and it was about half the size of a normal goal hoop.

"Hey!" James shouted indignantly, as Albus flew to playing height next to his brother. "I wasn't allowed to play last year!"

"He's only playing because we need one more player with you playing." His mother said, flying over in her Holyhead Harpies uniform.

"But, Fred's next oldest after me!" James shouted at his mother's retreating figure, she turned and called,

"He didn't want to play!"

Technically, Fleur's children and Percy's children were older than James, but they never played. James then looked at his brother, "How much did you pay him?"

Albus put on a mock innocent look and said "Why my dear brother thinks that I bought my way on the team," he put his hand on his head and dropped a few feet in the air in mock fainting, "What is the world coming too?" he said, flying away and across the pitch to his end as Grandad came on the pitch, and blew the whistle to signal the captains to shake hands.

On team "Potter" was Harry, the team captain acting as Seeker. George as Beater. Ron as Keeper. Ginny and Albus as Chasers.

On team "Weasley" was Charlie, the team captain acting as Seeker. Bill as Beater. Percy as Keeper. James and Angelina as Chasers.

Being the good sportsmen that they are, Harry and Charlie attempted to break each other's hands during the handshake. Grandad blew the whistle again and Harry and Charlie rose above everyone else, waiting for the release of the snitch. Grandad released the snitch and it whizzed off. Grandma Weasley had charmed the Snitch to only go so far away from the crate so that it didn't fly off into the village of Ottery St. Catchpole. James watched his dad look at Charlie then to where the snitch went. It was scary watching his dad in what everyone calls _game mode_ because he was always so focused, and it showed the man who was able to defeat Lord Voldemort at seventeen and then become Head of the Auror department at twenty.

Grandad then released the bludger, they only had one beater per team so they only used one bludger. It was, again, charmed to only go so far from the crate, and Bill sprang into action as it went flying at full pelt towards James.

"Close one there James!" Shouted Bill as he hit the bludger with the force that would move a mountain towards Ginny. James was about to call back, but Grandad released the quaffle and James went speeding after it. Angelina was the one who caught it. She sped off down the field towards Ron, who was bouncing nervously in front of centre hoop. She acted as it she was about to throw it, but dropped it so that James could catch it and throw it into the left hoop. Ginny came swooping in out of nowhere and caught it before it went anywhere near the hoop. James did a backflip and followed his mother back up the field. Albus had the quaffle at this point, but being a natural beater, he fumbled throwing it and Percy blocked it. James caught it as Percy kicked it in his direction and threw it to Angelina who caught it and rocketed off towards Ron. She acted to drop it again, and when Ginny moved into place to intercept it, she acted to throw it. Ginny then moved forwards, and James caught the sign Angelina gave to signal for him to move to her right. He did so, and she dropped it into his hands. He caught it and began to throw it to the right hoop, he then changed direction at the last-minute, avoiding a bludger from George, and threw it into centre hoop, straight past Ron. There was a cheer from the audience on the ground and they heard Hermione's magnified voice say;

"Score 10 to Team Weasley!"

James shouted "YES" but in the rush of wind, no one heard him.

Twenty minutes later, Charlie was very close to catching the snitch. He was just about to reach it, when George hit a well-aimed bludger at him and he had to turn upside down to miss it. It was a nice move, but it cost them.

"Another goal for Team Weasley!" Hermione bellowed, "That makes 120 to Team Weasley and 140 to Team Potter!"

James heart sank. They needed to keep Team Potter in easy range, or they would lose spectacularly.

It was another fifteen minutes before Harry came close to catching the snitch, and Charlie decided it was time to play dirty. Charlie reached out, and grabbed the end of Harrys broom tail and spun it over. Although Harry remained on his broom, it still counted as Blagging - trying to hinder or slow down a player by grabbing the back of the other player's broom. Grandad blew his whistle and called for a penalty to for Team Potter, which Ginny took. She scored and stretched the lead to 120 - 150.

Percy recovered the quaffle and threw it back into play. James caught it and did a back flip to turn around, and met a bludger. It hit him in the chest with full force and knocked the wind out of him. It threw him off-balance and made him wobbled for a bit. But, his balance gave in and he fell backwards off his broom.

"He'll be fine, Ginny." Said a familiar male voice.

"Yeah, Harry cracked his skull at his age, he took a bludger to the face." Said another.

"Ron, now's not the time compare Quidditch injuries!" Said a female voice.

James opened his eyes slowly and found that the light of the day, had vanished. He was inside the burrow, lying on the living room sofa, staring up at the ceiling.

"James!" Said his mother, stroking his forehead with the back of her hand, "You feel a little warm. Are you ok?"

James nodded, and as he did, he found the pain in the back of his head. He put a hand on it.

"I told you he's fine," his father said, laughing and sitting back in his chair, "Ron was right, I took a full on bludger to the head."

"Really," James asked, and his father nodded, "Who hit you?"

At this question, everyone laughed. "I had a little trouble finding a reasonable keeper after Ron landed himself in the hospital wing because he drank poison" James nodded, he had heard this story a million times about how Uncle Ron had taken an out of date love potion created by his brother George. Then once he took an antidote, he had drunk a goblet of Madam Rosmerta's Mead that contained poison. It was only due to his father's quick thinking of using a Bezoar that Ron was here today. Or, this was what he heard.

"Well, after that, I had to use the reserve keeper." Harry continued, "That meant using Cormac McLaggen. He's a good keeper, but he thought that he could do everyone's jobs better than they could." Harry smiled and took a sip of his Butterbeer. "That led to him wrestling a Beater's bat away from Jimmy Peakes and attempting to show him how to hit a Bludger, only to knock me off my broom and crack my skull."

James winced, "Ouch."

"Yeah." Ron said, "I could hear the commentary from Luna, she said something along the lines of, "Oh, Harry Potter was just hit in the face, I wonder if he's okay," and then everyone kinda realized what had happened..." Ron stopped laughing.

Grandma Weasley then bustled into the room, carrying a large tea-tray with food on it.

"You've been out all day." She said, placing the food on James' lap. "I was so worried, but your father seemed to think that the longer we let you sleep, the better."

"Well, with the amount of time he's spent unconscious, I thought he was on the right lines." Said his mother smiling slightly.

"You missed everything James!" Said Albus jumping up from his seat on the floor. "I did this amazing catch then when Uncle Percy wasn't looking, I threw it straight through centre hoop! It was amazing!"

"I was still watching you, but your brother falling from his broom was more important than you scoring a goal." Percy said, sitting up straighter from the sofa opposite.

"Still, it was an amazing shot." Albus said, more to himself than to anyone else.

James yawned, but tried to hide it. Unfortunately his mother saw him.

"Come on. I'm taking you home. You can go straight to bed, and do presents in the morning."

James groaned, but faltered under the gaze his mother gave him. He got to his feet and with his mother, they flooed back to their house in Godrics Hollow.


	4. Chapter Three:Green Opal and Silver Tear

Whilst James was waking up in a loving home, surrounded by his family and opening his birthday presents, Una Langhurst was waking up in a dingy hovel of a home. At the end of each term, Una would go back to her "Aunt's" house and live with her. Though secretly, she would return to the cold basement floor of a house she once watched her parents die in, and wait for school to begin again. The house was still partly standing after the collapse that killed her muggle father, and the basement was still accessible beneath the rubble. The place had spider webs, dust and broken bits of furniture everywhere.

A mattress, stolen from a muggle house that was having what they called a _car boot sale_, with a pillow was all that Una had for a bed.

The only possessions she had were her Hogwarts Slytherin robes, and a diary that her mother had written, outlining what Una needed to do.

"Lumos," Una said into the darkness, and her wand tip flared up. Una was underage, but had never been caught doing underage magic in this house as her mother had cast an enchantment upon it so that, in theory, the house did not exist.

Una threw the ball of light into the centre of the room where it hovered in mid-air, lighting up the small room.

The black diary her mother had left her was next to her bed, and a green opal sat upon it. Una took the opal in her hand, it felt smooth and cold in her hand, and fit perfectly in her palm. Una squeezed her eyes shut and thought of her mother.

Her mother materialised before her, and smiled.

"Mum." Una said, getting to her feet and going to hug her mother. Her arms went right through her.

"You're moving too fast darling," said the ghostly voice,

"Mother, I'm not moving fast enough," Una replied, pacing the tiny room.

"Nobody can suspect you," her mother said,

"Why would anyone, I've done nothing wrong, they don't know it was me, and they don't know what I took" Una argued

"I told you to wait," Mother replied, tonelessly,

"The faster I move Mother, the less people can come through, you're the strongest, and you're the only one who needs to come through. I can't do it, I thought I could but after five years of being close, I haven't done it!"

Una stopped her pacing and looked at what was left of her Mother. Una's mother had died years ago, but had come back as a ghost. Una couldn't bear having her mother so close again but not quite there. Her grandmother had known of the darkest of dark arts and had learnt them at the knee of one of the most powerful dark wizards anyone ever knew. Lord Voldemort. Una's grandmother had died in the Battle of Hogwarts, but not before she split herself in two. She took half of herself and used it to create a baby to carry on the family legacy, sort of like a back-up plan. Nobody had ever known of this, and Una's mother had grown up in a muggle orphanage, until she received her Hogwarts letter. When she arrived at the orphanage, she had been left with a diary that explained everything to her and told her what to do next. Una's mother fell ill and died when Una was six. In her will, Una had been left the diary and could now continue the task that Una's mother had been born to do.

"You have what you need then?" Mother asked

Una shook her head, "I went to get them. I tripped and lost them,"

Una's mother sighed.

"You need to find a way to get them back, I can feel myself fading." Una's mother said, moving forwards and placing her translucent hands on Una's shoulders, a single silver tear falling from her face.

"I think I know how." Una said, just before her mother turned to smoke and vanished.

Una collapsed back on her bed, tears running down her face. She had become bitter and the knee of her mother, but that just made her love her mother even deeper in more twisted ways.

The opal could bring her back. Una knew how to get her back fully, but she didn't have what she needed. The shock of seeing _him_ again had made her careless, slightly nervous, but ecstatic. That was the conformation she needed to know it was going to work. She couldn't however, do it herself. She was neither powerful enough nor as cunning, to trick the great Harry Potter, as her mother was.

This opal and the cleverly disguised time turner would bring her mother back, and then her mother can carry out the task that she was born to do.

Kill the Potters and restore the Dark Lord to power once more.


	5. Chapter Four: A new Subject

Three weeks later found Ginny Weasley stood shouting at the bottom of the stairs in the family home in Godrics Hollow.

"James Sirius, Albus Severus! If you want to go to Hogwarts this year, then get down these stairs, NOW!"

"I'm coming!" James shouted back, dragging his trunk off his bed. It hit the floor with a loud _thunk_, and Ginny, satisfied with the noise meaning James bothered to pack, walked away to help Lily.

James continued to drag his trunk across the room and into the corridor. Albus was just about the start down the stairs and James watched as his younger brother dragged his trunk from one step to the next. Usually his father would levitate them down the stairs for them, but he got called out urgently in the early morning to a second attempted break in at the ministry.

When James had reached the bottom of the stairs, he dumped his trunk by the front door next to Lily's and Albus', and made his way to the kitchen. His mother was there helping Lily get her cat, Pippa, into the small travel cage. James had an owl that he called, Woody; he was a large barn owl and was now sat on atop the refrigerator, his favourite place in the house. Albus had also gotten a pet. He had a white snowy owl, that he had called Scarlet.

When Albus had gotten home after Diagon Ally - the year he got his Hogwarts letter - and Ginny saw the large snowy owl on Albus' shoulder, she had looked to Harry, a slightly sad but happy expression on her face. Harry had smiled and gathered the small family in the living room to tell the story about Harry's first best friend. A snowy owl called Hedwig.

Seeing the impatient look on his mother's face, James quickly called Woody down off the fridge and put him carefully into his cage.

"Oh, how my mother did this with seven I'll never know." Ginny said to herself as she took the muggle motor cycle magazine from Albus. Lily put Pippa on her trunk and sat at the bottom of the stairs in the hall. This was her usual spot for when the family goes out, she isn't missed when everyone leaves, and she's out from under people's feet. That is until someone wants to go upstairs.

"If your father _ever _leaves again at this time he will regret it." Ginny said, chasing Albus out of the kitchen and telling him to stand by the door.

James looked around for a sign of Kreacher; he stuck his head around the corner into the living room and saw him sat on the sofa, his head in his hands.

"Kreacher," James said, walking forwards to the house elf. Kreacher lifted his head and looked at James with wide tennis ball eyes.

"Mistress is busy. Kreacher is told to stay away and go to Master Potter" Kreacher said, jumping off the sofa and wringing his hands together.

"Then, why haven't you?" James asked, knowing that if a house elf is told to do something, they must do it.

"Kreacher doesn't know where Master Potter is!" Kreacher half-shouted,

"He's at the ministry…" James said, becoming slightly nervous,

"Kreacher has been to the ministry. Kreacher asked people for Master Potter, and they say he wasn't there, and Kreacher cannot apperate to him."

James nodded absentmindedly, walking backwards out of the room. Suddenly a cold rush of wind flew through James, knocking him down to the wooded floor of the hall.

Lily jumped up from her place on the stairs and followed the silvery orb as it moved into the kitchen.

James got to his feet, rubbing his head from where it made contact with the floor and followed his younger sister.

The silvery orb gained a more real form when Ginny stepped in front of it.

Instead of an orb, it transformed into a massive stag. James had seen this once or twice before, but still the wonder of it mesmerised him. Lily and Albus had never seen this before though and where Lily was staring at it with curiosity - no doubt trying to figure out how to do it herself - Albus was staring at it with confusion about what it actually was, before he could decide what he thought about it, the stag spoke with Harrys voice.

_"Ginny I'm sorry I had to leave this morning. People at the ministry told me that you had sent Kreacher to look for me. He was never going to find me at the ministry because I wasn't there, hence me sending this. I'm sorry I lied to you." _

Ginny folded her arms across her chest.

_"Now I know your angry at me for leaving this morning, what with getting them all to school on time, but I had to go and sort some thing's out I'll be back before nightfall, if not, then I'll send you another patronus."_

Ginny's arms dropped and hung by her sides.

_"I love you, and kids, I'll see you all at Christmas." _

The stag evaporated into the air, and before anyone could ask any questions, Ginny shoved them towards the door shouting, "Come on then, out, and let's go!"

The family stood by the side of the road, trunks by their sides. Ginny stuck out her wand arm and the Knight Bus appeared. Ginny then took out her wand and levitated the three trunks on the back of the bus, telling the children to go and sit down as she paid for the tickets to Kings Cross. James and Albus ran straight for the front of the bus. There they took their seats and started a game of "funny muggle spotting" where they got points for seeing muggles; Ride bikes, go jogging, reading newspapers, wearing hats, etc…

Once they arrived at Kings cross they meet up with Aunt Hermione and Uncle Ron. They seemed confused as to the whereabouts of Harry, but seemed to disregard it as something worth getting worried about.

James walked with Hugo and Albus to fetch trolleys whilst everyone else waited with the trunks. Once they were back they loaded up the trolleys and walked down to platform nine and three-quarters.

Like every year that they went, muggles would stare at them as they passed. Who wouldn't? A large group of people all with; owls, cats, toads passing through, who wouldn't stare?

When the group reached the platform, they stood waiting for the all clear for the guard to send them through.

Rose went first, followed by Hugo, Lily, Albus then finally James.

The kids didn't wait for their parents, and instead loaded their heavy trunks onto the train. This gave Hermione, Ron and Ginny a chance to talk about what all of them had gotten in the owl post that morning.

"I guess you got one as well Ginny." Hermione said, taking out her letter as Ginny did hers.

"Yeah," Ginny said, "I'm not so sure about this. I know the ministry asked Harry to give stories."

"So were Neville and I," Ron said glumly.

Hermione unfolded the letter and read it through again.

"I haven't told James or Albus. Do you think I should have?" Ginny asked,

Ron shook his head,

"We haven't told Rose." He said, putting his hands in his pockets.

Ginny re-read her letter…

_Dear Parents and or Guardians,_

_ For the first time this year, our students in the 5__th__, 6__th__ and 7__th__ years at Hogwarts, will be taught in their History of Magic Class, about the First and Second Wizarding War._

_Your Son/Daughter will have up until their N.E.W.T.'s to lean about the wars and will sit an exam on the subject. This will amount to half an N.E.W.T. grade, as well as the other topics._

_Some of the things your child will be learning about - attacks, plots, rivalries, alliances, and personal stories - are not ones to be shared with the younger students. Therefore, your child will be asked to keep all stories and learning's to themselves. If you, or members of your family, could help your child in this subject by telling them your own stories, we are sure that it will better your child's learning._

_If you have any queries about this year's school topic, then feel free to send us an owl._

_ Yours sincerely,_

_Minerva McGonagall,_

_Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

Ginny looked back up at Ron and Hermione. She took a deep breath, still unsure about these lessons, and waited for the guard to nod her through. When he did, Ginny proceeded through the barrier to platform 9 and 3/4.

James saw his mother come through the barrier and went over to join her.

"Just put my trunk on." James said, smiling at her.

"Good," Ginny replied, smiling back "Has everyone else got on the train?"

"Yeah, I just came to say goodbye from all of us."

Ginny took her chance.

"James, later this year you will be learning everything about The Battle of Hogwarts."

James stared at her for a moment, unsure why he seemed nervous about this.

"I want you to know that some tales are very bad. Some of the stories you're going to learn are ones that your father had to give. He hasn't told me what he did, but all I know is that they asked him for stories and he gave them." Ginny's eyes filled with tears.

"I know mum." James said, pulling her into a hug, "I know that dad, Uncle Fred, Teddy's parents, all died that night. I know it's going to be a sad topic, but we need to know about these stories." James released his mother and stood back, "Besides, you guys told me loads of stories, so I'll probably know them all anyway."

Ginny smiled; however, she knew that James was very wrong in this statement.


End file.
